Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1460760
NEWS 5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 16 MARCH 2022 KARL AZZOPARDI FORMER Nationalist MP Mario Galea opened up on his experi- ence in dealing with depression, anxiety and suicidal tendencies, in a candid speech during a La- bour Party event on election proposals dealing with mental health reform. Galea, who was invited to ad- dress the event by Prime Min- ister Robert Abela's wife Lydia Abela, was disarmingly honest about his personal battles as he appealed to his audience to be more receptive to the silent struggles of sufferers. "I planned my own suicide," Galea told his audience. "I re- member taking walks on my own in Gozo, with my dear dog, scouting for spots where I could commit suicide and ensure an instant death... and then I called my psychiatrist, to tell him I was not only su- icidal, but that I was planning my suicide." Galea, a lifelong mental health advocate during his time as MP, said he could not bear the thought of leaving his dog Rex behind. "I planned my suicide, but I could not leave my dog alone." Galea was diagnosed with de- pression during his time as a parliamentarian, during which he served as parliamentary sec- retary for health in the Gonzi administration. "When I told Lawrence Gonzi that I would be resigning be- cause of my condition, he did not accept it, and insisted I visit his wife's brother who is a psychiatrist," he said. "The psychiatrist told me that I was faced with two choices: speak about my mental health and risk not being elected, or keep it to himself." Galea said Malta should be focusing its efforts on prevent- ing and curing mental health. "There is a defeaning silence on mental health. Let's work on normalising mental health issues," he said. "The country's authorities should focus its ef- forts on the sector. It's easier to speak about a toothache, than a broken heart." Galea opens Labour election event on mental health Former Nationalist MP Mario Galea has appeared in an event on mental health alongside the Prime Minister's spouse Lydia Abela. Galea was one of four PN candidates who withdrew their candidature on the first day of the 2022 general election cam- paign. Galea insisted at the outset that his presence at a Labour Party event should not be used, given his history as a National- ist MP, but that he was lending his voice as a mental health sufferer to a cause he strongly believed in. "I am not representing an- yone. No one should be sur- prised that I am addressing a Labour Party press confer- ence," he said. In comments he gave to Malt- aToday, he had rejected claims by Nationalist leader Bernard Grech there was consensus to step aside. "It's not true he told us to re- sign. I had already prepared my campaign. I took photos at my district and had already begun home visits," he had exclusive- ly told this newspaper. 'I planned my own suicide': former MP Mario Galea's candour on depression Former Nationalist MP Mario Galea addresses Labour event on mental health spearheaded by Lydia Abela